


Keith Has Security Guards

by moretrash



Series: Dads of Marmora [18]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Dads of Marmora (Voltron), Galra Keith (Voltron), Galra blep okay, Hunk is such a good friend, Keith and Pidge being friends is important to me, Nests, blepping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-22
Updated: 2018-03-22
Packaged: 2019-04-06 07:49:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14052312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moretrash/pseuds/moretrash
Summary: During a visit to the castle of lions, Shiro and Allura get a talking-to and Keith learns that Lance, Pidge, and Hunk are the best friends ever.





	Keith Has Security Guards

**Author's Note:**

> Based off of a wonderful comment I got from MissGirlie !
> 
> "Because of season five, I just want Lotor and the pack to explode on the paladins for mistreating Keith. Like, I'm now imaging everyone at the castle being passive aggressive towards Keith, and Keith getting upset and in his head about it (rightfully so tbh), and every galra and their mother exploding on the residents of the castle."

Keith sat quietly in his seat of the pod he and his pack were travelling in. He would have observed the vast expanse of space passing by, but he was simply too nervous.

He wanted to see his friends. He truly did. He cared about the paladins as if they were his family. As a matter of fact, he considered them all members of his pack, which he supposed was like a family of sorts. But he simply couldn’t bring himself to fully forget the fact that they straight up ignored him because he looked more like a Galra now. 

It was quite an intimate level of a bond to be fully accepted into a pack. Not the sexual type of intimate, of course not, but the closest bond possible. It was so hard for Keith to chip a hole in the walls he had to let them in, even if he himself had build them up, heartbreak after heartbreak. It was like a slap in the face for him to let them into that special part of himself that so few had seen, only to be rejected because of something he couldn’t control. He supposed not all of them had treated him that way. After the initial shock, Pidge had resumed treating Keith like they normally would, but with only a few questions about Galra instincts and needs mixed in. Hunk had been his normal self, giving no more and no less physical contact, whether it be in the form of bone-crushing hugs or small back pats. Coran had been the same self he always had been, offering advice when he could and always being willing to have a conversation. Shiro, Allura, and Lance however? They hardly looked at him. 

Keith glanced at the sundress he was wearing, suddenly regretting choosing to wear it. How would the paladins react if they saw him wearing a dress on top of everything? Keith sighed, tightening his grip on the seatbelt strapping him into his seat.

“Kit?” Thace asked, glancing behind himself to look at Keith, “Are you okay?” Kolivan was steering the pod, his eyes never leaving the screens that showed what the conditions looked like outside of the pod. To his right sat Ulaz, and then Thace. Antok was sitting in the second row, with Regris to his right and Keith at the very end of the row. Keith sighed a bit and shrugged.

“I just… they’re going to ignore me again, I just know it.” Keith said, picking at the soft fabric of the dress. Antok reached over and patted Keith’s knee.

“Just know one thing, kit. If they ever make you feel uncomfortable, you are under no obligation to stay in the room, okay? They are not your true friends if they reject you. Just let us know if you want to leave the room and we will let you, alright?” He said. Keith smiled and nodded.

“Yeah, I’ll let you know. Thank you.” Keith said, straightening up as the pod approached the hangars of the castle of lions. Keith felt his heart start to race, but he couldn’t tell if it was from excitement or nerves. Kolivan guided the pod into the hangar that opened up for them, landing smoother than Keith would ever hope to land a pod. The lions, at least, could land on their own on the off chance that their paladin was too exhausted to guide them after a battle.

Keith climbed out of the pod, fiddling with the fabric of the sundress yet again. Regris climbed out after him, followed by Antok, Ulaz, Thace, and Kolivan. Keith couldn’t even open his mouth to greet the paladins that had gathered before he was nearly tackled to the ground by a hug.

“Keith! We missed you so much!” Pidge exclaimed, their arms and legs wrapped around Keith like a koala. Keith chuckled and took a moment to regain his balance.

“I missed you guys too, Pidge.” He said. Pidge pulled away, lowering themselves to the ground as they examined Keith.

“Is that a dress?” They asked, their voice incredulous. Keith felt his face burn, trying to stutter out an explanation. Pidge reached forward and grabbed Keith’s arm in a gentle, reassuring grip.

“I’m not saying it to be rude or insulting, Keith. I was just surprised. It looks nice, honestly.” They said, smiling at Keith. Keith smiled back, warming up a bit to the group.

“It really does look nice, buddy! The white looks really good against your purple fur.” Hunk said. Keith grinned shyly. Lance made his way over and patted his shoulder in greeting.

“How very like you to choose red accents, mullet.” he said, chuckling. “In all honesty, though, Hunk and Pidge are right, it looks really nice on you.” he added. Keith grinned more. Lance had warmed up to being around Keith, no longer treating him differently. It made something within Keith flutter with excitement.

“Coran is pretty busy, but he said he’d come see you once he was finished.” Hunk said. He couldn’t help but coo when he saw how Keith’s tail was waving excitedly at the positive attention.

Keith glanced over at Shiro and Allura, his expression hopeful. Shiro smiled tensely at him.

“The dress looks nice, Keith.” he said simply. He made no move to make the affectionate little pats and hugs he always did when Keith visited. Allura simply nodded in agreement.

The five Galra and three humans that had been around Keith could only watch and feel their hearts break as Keith’s tail stopped waving and hung limply, sadly. It was a punch to the gut for Keith, in all honesty. The two people he looked to for approval within the castle had all but outright rejected him. The three humans that had been standing in front of Keith gasped in horror when they saw how Keith’s eyes began pooling with tears.

“No no no! Keith don’t cry, buddy! Its okay!”, “They’re just jerks, Keith, ignore them.”, and “Come on, let’s go, you don’t deserve to be treated like this.” were among the attempts Lance, Pidge, and Hunk made to stop the potential onslaught of tears. Keith made a quiet, distressed noise that caught the attention of the Galra standing behind them, growling lowly. Kolivan stepped forward and addressed the group.

“Keith wishes to leave the room and go somewhere else. We feel that we should teach The black paladin and the princess why these actions are wrong. Would it be possible for you three to take him somewhere else? Perhaps build a nest, it is a common comfort measure for Galra.” he said in a soft voice. Lance nodded.

“Yeah, of course we can!” He said. He wrapped an arm around Keith’s shoulders and herded him out of the room, Hunk and Pidge close behind.

“We should head to one of our rooms. I doubt he wants to be out in the open in somewhere like the lounge, and his room would just feel wrong to him, probably.” Pidge said. “I already know my room is out of the question. It's super messy and it would take hours to clean, and nests are pretty complex structures that take up whole rooms sometimes.” they added. Hunk nodded.

“I’d say mine, but there’s a lot of stuff scattered around. I think we should go with Lance’s room, it's the cleanest.” he said. Lance nodded.

“Sure, we can do that. Keith, are you okay with going to my room to calm down? By the way, Pidge, how did you know how complex Galra nests are?” Lance said, rubbing Keith’s back when he felt his shoulders jump from a sob. Keith nodded at the question, a small smile gracing his teary features at the fact that Lance thought about his comfort as well.

“Oh, I did a bit of research about Galra habits and instincts when we found out Keith was part Galra. You know, to see if we could make him more comfortable or something.” Pidge said, as though it were the most natural thing in the universe. Keith couldn’t help another small smile.

“So you were the one who kept mixing all those blankets in with my laundry, huh?” He said. Pidge nodded with a small chuckle.

“Yeah! I was going to see if you would use them to nest, but you seemed to have no idea why they were in your laundry.” They said. Keith shrugged.

“I really didn’t know, honestly. I always thought they were someone else’s that got mixed in with mine.” Keith said as the group entered Lance’s room. Keith couldn’t help but silently appreciate the strange calm that covered the room. It was clean, but there were things placed around the room that made it feel lived in and homely. Lance sat him down on the bed and sat next to him, wrapping an arm around him while Hunk and Pidge went to scavenge for spare blankets and pillows, and whatever other soft things that could find.

When the pair returned, it was with arms full of blankets and pillows. Keith reached forward and grabbed a large, thick blanket from Pidge’s arms, laying it on the bottom like a mattress. He took a blanket from Hunk next, laying it down. He continued this pattern, weaving blankets together and laying them down, finally scattering around pillows and draping a few blankets on top to burrow under. The other three in the room watched as Keith diligently worked, smiling. 

“You guys can get in now.” Keith declared, sitting up in the middle of the nest. It took up a majority of the room, enough for all of them to curl up together in the small space. Hunk climbed in first when Keith laid down, pulling the smaller male against his chest. Lance climbed in on Keith’s other side, letting the half-Galra rest his head on his chest. Pidge draped themself over the three of them.

“If you don’t mind me asking, why do you care about Shiro’s opinion so much? I mean, I care about his opinion, but nowhere near as much as you do. Not that that’s a bad thing, but just… why?” Pidge asked, wrestling a large blanket over the group of them. They can all hear and feel Keith purring, a sound that warned their hearts.

“Well, he’s like my brother, yeah? I told you, he was the first person who never gave up on me. I just don’t want to disappoint him.” Keith said. He yawned and curled up under the blanket. He glanced up when he heard Lance gasp.

“Keith… are you blepping?” Lance asked in awe, his voice holding a soft coo. Hunk and Pidge both scrambled to see when they heard Lance’s claim, coos escaping them when they saw that Keith was, indeed, blepping, the tip of his tongue poking out of his lips just the slightest bit.

“What’s blepping?” Keith asked. Pidge smiled fondly.

“An interesting quirk, Keith, that’s what it is.” They said.

-

Meanwhile, in the hangars, Shiro and Allura were face to face with five growling, enraged Galra. 

“Are you aware you two are harming our kit?” Thace asked, his ears pinned back. His legs are bending like he’s preparing to pounce on the two. Ulaz gently rubbed his back, though the paler Galra’s growling never let up.

“How are we hurting him?” Allura asked, her voice a bit confused. Kolivan sighed a bit, trying to reign in his temper for the sake of a calm conversation.

“He looks to you two for approval most out of all the paladins. You two blatantly ignoring him for looking Galra is hurting him. And your reaction to the dress was slightly negative in our opinion.” Kolivan said. Shiro stopped, seeming to think it over.

“Kolivan, I genuinely had no problems with the dress thing. If he wants to wears dresses, good for him. It's just a bit shocking to see a close friend suddenly look like a Galra.” he said. Ulaz can see how much he cared about Keith. “It will just take a bit to get used to, I guess. I never… I never meant to hurt him. If you don’t mind me asking, how bad did he react? I know he thinks a lot of my opinion…” Shiro added.

“He locked himself in his room for a full movement after he came back from his last visit. He refused to eat and almost refused to drink. He cried when I got him to come out because he had a headache from crying and got overwhelmed by all the blades in the dining hall.” Regris said. Shiro winced, regret clear on his features.

“I don’t have a problem with Keith specifically. I really don’t. This sounds like an excuse but I know I have to work on looking past my prejudices against Galra” he said. Ulaz sighed.

“It is not us you should be apologizing to, Shiro. It is Keith. But he will forgive you so easily. He thinks so highly of you. He’s already forgiven you.” he said. The lavender Galra spared a glance at the time. “Regris, kit, go fetch Keith and make sure he gets a meal,” he turned back towards Shiro and Allura, “he was too nervous to see you guys, he couldn’t keep anything down.”

-

“So, Keith, what’s this whole ‘kit’ thing between you and the others?” Lance asked, rubbing Keith’s back. Keith shrugged, his purring growing louder at the action.

“Apparently, in Galra terms, I’m still a toddler. I have a lot of child instincts and needs. Kolivan and the others just kind of… unofficially adopted me, I guess? They make sure I address those needs and wants. Its nice, really.” Keith said, a content little mewl making way past his lips.

“So… you’re basically a Galra baby? That’s so cute!” Hunk said. Keith huffed but a grin couldn’t be stopped from spreading across his face. 

“Well, no, I’m bigger because of my human genes. Full Galra toddlers are like… crazy tiny is proportion to adults.” Keith said. Lance laughed and patted Keith’s hair.

“You mean like you?” he asked, gasping when Keith playfully smacked his arm. He could hardly feel it, but it was more surprising to see Keith so relaxed and playful. He looked up when he heard a few knocks on the door. Upon the door sliding open, everyone could see Regris standing there

“Keith? Ulaz says you should have a meal now. Do you think you can handle it?” Regris asked, crouching down and setting and hand on Keith leg to get his attention. Keith nodded a bit and sat up, laughing softly when Pidge yelped out their disagreement at the disturbance

“Handle it? Is Keith sick? Keith, do you need some medicine?” Hunk asked, worried because of the phrasing. Regris chuckled a bit.

“No, he’s not sick. He was just too wound up during the long trip here to be able to hold anything down.” he explained. He leaned close to Hunk.

“I know you are in charge of the kitchen here, do you think there is anything that Keith can eat instead of food goo? He says he doesn’t like the contrasting texture and tastes.” Regris whispered. Hunk nodded.

“Actually, yeah! We picked up some ingredients during a supply run! I’m sure we could whip something up for Keith.” He said. Keith perked up and grinned widely. He got up and followed the small group into the kitchen.

“What exactly is this ‘food goo’?” Regris asked, tilting his head. Hunk smiled as he pulled ingredients down from cabinets.

“Well, food goo is basically this neon green… goo, I guess, that has nutrients and such that we need to survive.” he explained. Regris perked up.

“We call that nutrient pudding! I’ve always wondered why Keith had a preference for that when he first joined the blade.” Regris said. Keith shrugged a bit.

“I didn’t know what any of the other foods are. I didn’t want to risk an allergic reaction or something, so I stuck with what I knew.” Keith explained, sheepishly rubbing his neck.

“After you eat, Mullet, I’m in charge of checking on Lotor. You know, make sure he isn’t starving to death or dying of dehydration. Wanna come? I know you’ve been searching for Lotor for a while.” Lance said. Keith smiled and nodded.

“That sounds like a good idea. I have a few things I want to tell him anyway.” Keith said. Lance nodded and patted his back when Hunk set a plate of food in front of him.

“Eat up, Mullet. You look pretty thin. Are you sure you’re eating enough?” Lance asked. Keith glanced down at his plate as he picked up his fork, clearly not used to being the center of attention among the paladins. Among his pack, he was used to it, even welcomed it, but he simply wasn’t used to being the center of attention among other humans.

-

“Princess Allura, surely you were taught that judging someone based off of their race is certainly something that should never be done?” Ulaz asked. 

“Yes. Keith is a Galra, the race that killed off my entire race!” Allyra protested. Ulaz sighed in exasperation.

“Maybe so. But myself, Kolivan, Thace, and Antok are also Galra, correct? And yet you trust us.” he said. “So there is something deeper than that.”

“It is different. I didn’t know that Keith was part Galra. To know he is… it feels like he was lying to me the entire time.” Allura said. Thace stepped forward.

“Keith did not know he was part Galra either. He lived his life thinking he was a normal human. And he is, just not fully human. He is still Keith. He wasn't intentionally trying to lie to you about who he was.” Thace said. Allura nodded a bit.

“I know. I tell myself that but I just can not help thinking he will betray me.” Allura said. Thace smiled a bit.

“I know. But ignoring him is not the answer. Even the smallest attempts to get close to him again will make him so happy, I promise.” Thace said. Allura nodded and took a deep breath.

“I am glad that we could have a… mostly calm discussion about this problem. But if it continues I can assure you we will not be as calm. Keith is just a kit in our society. He does not deserve this.” Antok said.

“I will attempt to apologize and make amends, though I do not know if it will be successful.” Allura assured.

“We do not know either. The best you can do is try right now. He may accept your apology and still take a while to forgive you.” Kolivan said. It sounded bleak, though Allura knew that with the way her relationship with Keith was, that was probably the most she could hope for right then.

-

“Make sure not to open the cell, Mullet.” Lance said as he and Keith entered the room that Lotor was housed in. Upon examination, Keith could see Lotor sitting quietly in the cell. The Galra prince glanced over when he heard the two enter.

“Hello, blue paladin. And I see you’ve brought a friend today,” Lotor said, his eyes running up and down Keith’s form much in the way Ulaz did when he was searching for injuries. “Don’t I know you, young Galra?” he asked. Lance shook his head.

“No way. Keith doesn’t live here, so there’s no way you two could have met.” Lance said. He glanced over in confusion when Keith made a sound of disagreement.

“No, actually, um, we haven’t formally met. But we… know each other other.” Keith said softly, stepping closer to the cell as if what he wanted to say next was intended for Lotor’s ears only. “Thank you. For what you did at Naxela.” Keith whispered once he was close enough.

“It is no problem, young Galra. I do hope you have recovered from your injuries if you sustained any?” Lotor said. Keith nodded.

“Yeah. A member of my pack is a doctor, so I can’t really hide injuries. The other paladins have been treating you right? I mean, as nice as you can treat a prisoner.” He said.

“Indeed. I have the best I can ask for all things considered.” Lotor said. “You said other paladins? What do you mean?”

“Well, I used to be paladin. Then I found out I was part Galra and I kind of… left.” Keith said. He chose his words carefully. He didn’t want to tell Lotor a lot about himself. 

“Left? Because you were part Galra?” Lotor asked in confusion. Keith shrugged a bit.

“Plus, the whole lion switch thing is confusing.” Keith said. Lotor glanced at Lance, his eyes narrowed.

“Do treat this young Galra well, blue paladin. Kits are of the utmost importance in Galra society. To hurt one is to hurt the entire society, in a way. Besides, I’m sure his pack would tear you to shreds for harming their kit.” Lotor said.

Lance just rolled his eyes. He couldn’t believe that paladins’ prisoner was telling him how to treat Keith.

-

Thace and Ulaz walked through the hallways of the castle in search of Keith.

The old ship was quiet, the only sound being their footsteps and the occasional squeak of wear and tear.

“I do believe this trip will end well, my mate.” Thace said.

Ulaz couldn’t agree more.


End file.
